(15)
The Committee is concerned with the impunity that persists regarding most of the human rights violations
committed during the internal armed conflict, with over 600 massacres documented by the Historical Clarification
Commission still to be investigated. The Committee notes with concern that in practice the 1996 National
Reconciliation Act has become an obstacle to the effective investigation of the 1982 case of the Dos Erres massacre,
which is making no headway due to procedural delays without any legal justification (arts. 11, 12 and 14).
The State party should strictly apply the National Reconciliation Act, which explicitly excludes any
amnesty for the perpetrators of acts of torture and other grave human rights violations, ensures the
initiation of prompt, effective, independent and thorough investigations of all acts of torture and other
grave human right violations committed during the internal armed conflict, and grants adequate
compensation to the victims.
(16)
The Committee is seriously concerned about the numerous allegations concerning:
(a)
The “social cleansing” and killings of children living in the street and in marginalized areas, which
often involve acts of torture and ill-treatment, and the fact that such cases are not thoroughly investigated;
(b)
The increase in violent killings of women, which often involve sexual violence, mutilations and
torture. The fact that these acts are not investigated exacerbates the suffering of relatives seeking justice, who, in
addition, complain of gender discrimination by the authorities in the course of investigatory and judicial proceedings;
and
(c)
The lynchings of individuals, which casts doubt on whether the rule of law is applied in the State party
(arts. 2, 12, 13, 16).
With regard to these practices, the State party should:
(a)
Take urgent measures to ensure that no persons within its jurisdiction are subjected to
torture, or to inhuman or degrading treatment, and fully comply with its duty to prevent and punish
such acts when carried out by private individuals;
(b)
Ensure prompt, impartial and thorough investigations, free of any discrimination on
gender, race, social origin or any other grounds, and bring alleged perpetrators to justice;
(c)
Ensure the full implementation of the Law for the Integral Protection of Children and
Adolescents, inter alia by providing sufficient funds to guarantee the security, well-being and
development of all children;
(d)
Carry out campaigns and training activities for police officers and members of the
judiciary to make them duly aware of the existing social violence, in order to enable them to receive
complaints and investigate them properly.
(17)
The Committee is concerned about reports of sexual violence against women in police stations (arts. 6 and 11).
The State party should take steps to ensure that all arrested women are brought immediately before a
judge and then transferred to a detention centre for women, if so ordered by the judge.
(18)
The Committee is concerned that the functioning of the State party’s prison system continues to lack a
regulatory framework (art. 11).
The State party should adopt legislation on the prison system in conformity with international human
rights norms such as the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and the Body of
Principles for the Protection of All Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment.
48
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